IRRT (International Relations Round Table)

Dear colleagues,

First, we apologize for sending out an incorrect link in the reminder email and any inconvenience that caused.

A few of us were able to connect and discussed the following:

Language codes in cataloging procedures

• MARC language codes are broad and do not represent the diversity of languages across the African continent (and all regions of the globe). [https://www.loc.gov/marc/languages/language_name.html]

• ISO639-3 codes [https://iso639-3.sil.org/code_tables/639/data/all] are more granular and the U.S. Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) published a recommendation in late 2022 for their use. [https://www.loc.gov/aba/pcc/scs/documents/ISO-639-3-guidelines.pdf]

• The Library of Congress is piloting a system to incorporate BCP 47 language tags, which can encode the language, the region, the script, and the transliteration system (if applicable). It will be used in authority records, helping to identify preferred variants, and they will eventually encourage catalogers to add the tags to both bibliographic and authority records. [https://www.loc.gov/marc/mac/2025/2025-05.html]

Margaret Hughes, Africana cataloger at Stanford University Libraries, would like to create a network of catalogers and other language experts in African countries who would be willing to help identify languages and offer advice. If you are interested, please email her [margarin@stanford.edu]. Information about existing networks and interest groups is also welcome.

ALA Annual session Sunday 28 June 3-4 p.m. McCormick Place W 192 C 

• The topic is local needs and emerging technology: an African perspective. Professor Arnold Mwanzu of Aga Khan University (Nairobi, Kenya) will talk about artificial intelligence in academic libraries in low-and middle-income countries and Professor Lisa Hussey of Simmons College (Boston, Massachusetts USA) will discuss working with schools in Rwanda.

• Currently under the title "Erasing Erasure." {which I think will morph into a future webinar – jw}

Next meeting is Monday 15 June 2026

6:30 a.m. Pacific / 7:30 a.m. Mountain / 8:30 a.m. Central / 2:30 p.m. West Africa / 4:30 p.m. East Africa [Daylight Savings time USA – Sunday 9 March 2025 - Sun 2 November 2025]

https://msstate.webex.com/msstate/j.php?MTID=m087b3a9adacb41637c39740fc967fa31

Among other updates, Ngozi Perpetua Osuchukwu, lecturer at Nnamdi Azikiwe University (Nigeria) will report back from her cataloging colleagues on tools and information resources.

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Justine Withers
jmwithers@uchicago.edu
Metadata and Resource Management Librarian
University of Chicago D'Angelo Law Library
She/Her/Hers
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